“The artist-led group known as MOCA Mobilization is back. The group, founded in 2008 by artists Cindy Bernard and Diana Thater, has posted online a petition calling for specific changes at the Museum of Contemporary Art, following a round of controversial layoffs and the resignations of all four artists on the board of trustees.

The petition, posted on Facebook and change.org with a goal of 1,500 signatures, calls for the museum to reverse its plans and fill its chief curator position, which has been vacant since the departure of Paul Schimmel.

It also asks the institution to bring new artists onto its board to replace those who have resigned. The group is not calling for any board or staff resignations.

“I think it’s really important when you’re approaching something like this to stay as positive as you can be,” said Cindy Bernard. “And I’m not comfortable dictating to the director what shows he should and should not do, but we do feel he should place more emphasis on fundraising and running the museum. You need that chief or senior curator to support the curatorial staff, provide a buffer between director and staff and to provide another voice if the director is himself curating.”

“This crisis at MOCA cannot be reduced to any single person. It’s not just a [director] Jeffrey [Deitch] problem, not just an Eli [Broad] problem, and it wouldn’t even be fair to blame the current board of trustees,” she said. “It’s a complex set of issues that has evolved over years and has involved many people.”

SOURCE: Jori Finkel, “MOCA Mobilization is back in action,” Los Angeles Times, July 24, 2012. Read in full at link below: